Conveyer.



No. 79Q,776. .PATENTED MAY 23, 1905. B. H. ALVEY.

CONVBYER.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT.9.1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

i II... W i w *iwllll L l l No. 790,776. PATENTED MAY 23, 1905. B. H. ALVEY.

CONVEYER.

APPLICATION FILED sBPT.9.19o4.

UUHIIHHHHHH wmmwo NITED STATES Patented May 2S, 1905.

PATENT Price..

BENJAMIN H. ALVEY, OF LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY, ASSIGNOR -TO THE ALVEY-FERGUSON COMPANY, OF LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY, A CORPO- CONVEYER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 790,776, dated May 23,1905.

Application filed September To all whom it may con/cern:

Be it known that l, BENJAMIN H. ALvEY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Louisville, in the county of Jelferson and State of Kentucky, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Conveyers; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear` and eX- act description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the ligures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this speciiication.

This invention relates to certain improvements in that type of conveyers designed to lower boxes, barrels, or other articles from one elevation to another by the force of gravity and comprising a track, chute, or way arranged spirally around a central post; and it consists in certain peculiarities in the construction of parts and in certain novel combinations of elements, substantiallyas hereinafter described, and particularly pointed out in the subjoined claims.

A leading object of the present invention is to provide a spiral conveyer adapted to carry all the various kinds of articles usually stored or kept in a warehouse-for example, in which the articles will run down the conveyer at a uniform speed and with a minimum oi' friction and wherein also said conveyer while light and inexpensive in construction is at the same time of the highest durability.

A further object of the invention is to provide a spiral conveyer of such construction that it is adapted to carry the packages from any of the upper loors to the basement or shipping-room and is also adapted to discharge any of the packages onto any floor intermediate the one from which the same were received and said basement or shippingroom.

Another object of the invention is to provide a system of conveyers comprising a spiral conveyer leading from the ceiling to near the ioor oi' each room, for example, and means for automatically conveying the articles to an'd from said spiralconveyer.

These several objects are well accomplished 6,1904. serai No. 223,848.

l by the construction illustrated in the accompanying drawings, whereinveyer embodying my improvements. Fig. 2 is a similar view showing a part of the same and clearly showing the adjustable section of the spiral secured in its inoperative position.

veyer, taken on any line which extends between two rollers. Fig. 4 is a detail view showing the pivoting oi' the end of the adjustable spiral section. Fig. 5 is a detail view showing the manner of connecting' the discharge or switch section with the spiral conveyer. Fig. 6 is a perspective View of a system of gravity-conveyers embodying my spiral conveyer and showing the manner ot' arranging and connecting the parts which avoids the necessity of forming in each floor a well or opening of sudcient diameter to permit the spiral conveyer to pass through the same.

Like numerals of reference designate like parts in the several figures.

As the construction of the spiral conveyer forms a leading part of the present invention, it will now be described in detail as follows:

1 designates a suitably-sup ported post which supports the spiral chute or way 2. This chute or way is composed of a series of sections, each ot' which consists of a pair of angle irons or plates 3, which are spaced apart and form the corners of the frame of the Way or chute, and they are coiled spirally around said post l, as shown. The vertical portions of said angle irons or plates afford bearings for the journals of`independently-revoluble rollers 4, which rolle rs extend across the space between the vertical portions of the angleirons and constitute a'track upon which the articles will run with a minimum of friction and without liability of stoppage at an undesired place. The horizontal portions oi' said angle irons or plates form extended bearings by which said plates may be eflciently supported upon straps 5, which are arranged at intervals beneath said irons or plates and are riveted or otherwise secured to said horizontal portions. Said straps have upwardly-bent ends Figure l is a side elevation of a spiral con- Fig. 3 is a transverse section through the con- 5, to which are riveted or otherwise suitably secured rai-ls 6 and 7, arranged, respectively, at the outer and inner' sides of the conveyer above the ends of said rollers. These rails serve to give additional stiffness to the frame of the conveyer and also prevent liability of the articles or packages from leaving the conveyer at an undesired place if said articles or packages become crowded or jammed together' at any place in the conveyer by reason of being fed to said conveyer more rapidly than they are removed or discharged therefrom. To overcome the centrifugal force which tends to cause the articles or packages to move toward the outer guard-rail in the passage of said articles down the spiral'path, the outer end portion 4a of each of the rollers 4 is made of greater diameter than the inner end portion 4b of the same, and each of said rollers is formed between said portions with a depression 4c and with shoulders 4d, connecting the base of said depression with its said outer and inner end portions, whereby said articles or packages are caused to travel in the center of the way and are guided around the post.

The several sections of the conveyer are secured to the post 1 by brackets which comprise arms 8, having 'collars or sleeves 9 at their inner ends, said collars or sleeves being 'bolted or otherwise tixedly secured to the post 1 and said arms extending' under the conveyer and secured thereto in any suitable way. The post 1 is preferably made of gas-pipe or other metal tubing and in sections, although it may be made of wood, if desired. v

lt will be 'apparent that the conveyer abov described may be inexpensively constructed and economically erected of any length desi-red and that while simple and inexpensive in construction it is at the same time highly durable and will very efficiently conduct articles or packages from one elevation to a lower one without liability of breakage of said articles or packages and without danger of becoming jammed at an inopportune time.

It is frequently desirable to discharge some of the articles or packages at places above the lower Yiioor or shipping-room, and in order that this may bc most conveniently accomplished one (or more) of the sections or parts of the sections of the spiral conveyer, as shown at 10, are hingedly connected with the section or part adjacent to one of its ends, as shown at 11, and is removably connected with the section or part adjacentto its other end, whereby said hinged section or part may be turnedA pivotally, and thus break the continuity of the spiral and be replaced by a straight run or discharge-section 13, which m'ay be remov# ably secured at one end to the spiral and form a switch leading' therefrom to a suitable place of discharge or delivery of said articles or packages. The hinged section of the conveyer is held in its inoperative position by suitable means, such as the hook 14. The means for removably attaching the switch 13 to the conveyer preferably comprises interengaging hooks 15, secured to said switch and spiral conveyer', respectively.

In the practical erection of the spiral conveyer in a warehouse, for instance, it is preferred to discontinue the conveyer at the top of the room next the uppermost one, as shown, and to provide a special means for conducting the articles or packages from the top room to the spiral in the room below, whereby there is not alone saved the expense of continuing the spiral into the upper room, but, further, there is avoided the necessity of cutting in the floor of said room an opening or well large enough to accommodate the spiral. To this end a supplemental conveyer or slide 18 is arranged to discharge upon the upper terminall of the spiral way goods placed upon said supplemental conveyer or slide inthe room above that containing said spiral way. This supplemental con veyer or-slide 18 extends off from the upper terminal of thespiral way at an inclination upward therefrom through an opening 17, which is formed in the floor of the upper room and is located at one side of the spiral way and need only be large enough to receive said supplemental conveyer or slide 18 and the articles or packages which are delivered by the same to the spiral way. Moreover, such a construction makes it practical to close the opening 17 by suitable means when the system is not in use, thus shutting off draft from one room to the other through the floor and ceiling between them, which is important in case of fire and valso avoiding danger to persons which may arise from the presence of an open well through the floor without necessitating in order to aiford these safeguards the inclosing of the spiral way in a tubular casing. In order that the supplemental conveyer or slide 18 may not interfere with the use of a closing means for the opening 17, said conveyer or slide is preferably detachable, as shown in the drawings, wherein it has at one end a hook 19, which engages a similar hook 19, which projects from the post 1 or from the spiral conveyer, as desired. lts bottom or track is preferably formed of rollers 18'.

r1`he spiral conveyer thus constructed preferably .forms a part of a system of gravity-conveyers wherein the articles or packages are automaticall y carried along the several floors to the spiral conveyer and delivered from said spiral conveyer at the place desired, whereby the articles may be taken from and delivered at places more or less at a distance from said spiral conveyer with less manual labor than otherwise would be required. To this end each room is preferably provided with a gravity-conveyer 20 of suitable construction, which runs along or around the room and is suitably connected therewith. In the drawings these conveyers are shown as composed IOO IIO

ISO

of a frame 21, within which is `iournaled independently-revoluble rollers 22` 'Forming the track for the articles or packages to run on,

and such construction is preferred, although my invention is not restricted in its scope to the same. The rollers 22 are preferably of form similar torthat employed in the spiral conveyer, except that they need not be of g'reater diameter at one end than the other except in the turns 24 of the conveyer.

In some buildings it is inconvenient to cut in each of the floors a well or opening otl sufficient diameter to permit the spiral conveyer to pass through it. The construction above described is well adapted to avoid this necessity.

I have shown in Fig. 6 a system embodying the above-mentioned features of construction and wherein the spiral conveyer for each room is separate from that of every other room, the post of each being secured at its top and bottom to the ceiling and ioor, respectively, of its room, and each floor being shown as formed at one side of the spiral conveyer with an opening 17, through whicha supplemental conveyer or slide 18", similar to the supplemental conveyer or slide 18 above described, extends tothe spiral conveyer in the room below. In this adaptation of the system each ot' the conveyors 20 has one end arranged to deliver the articles or packages to the slide 18, while its other end is arranged to receive articles or packages delivered thereto by the discharge-switch 13. It is evident that articles or packages may be placed on or taken from any part of the conveyer 20. Each of said conveyers is preferably composed of sections having means for detachably connecting them together to form a conveyer oi any required length or shape.

It is frequently necessary or desirable to remove goods from the upper floors ot' a building at a time when it is not convenient to have a car, wagon, or other receptacle or place ready to receive the same from the conveyer, and in order that this temporary lack of a receptacle or place may not interfere with the immediate removal of the goods from said upper floors means are provided whereby the conveyer will not discharge goods placed thereon, said means preferably comprising a gate or block 30, adapted to be adjusted or placed across the discharge, end of the conveyer, and when in said position to hold the articles or packages on the conveyer and to be adjusted or removed from across said discharge end when it is practical to permit said articles or packages to be discharged.

The advantages of the above-described spiral conveyer and of the system comprising the same will be evident from the above description and need not be further set forth, and it will also be evident that the invention is not restricted in its scope to the exact details, but that changes may be made in said details without departing Jfrom the spirit of the invention. A

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is-

1. A spiral conveyer, comprising asupporting-post, and a Way arranged spirally around the same and comprising an open frame coinposed of a pair of spaced angle-plates forming the sides thereof, straps extending transversely of the conveyer and secured to the horizontal members ot' said angle-plates and provided with bent end portions which rise above the vertical members of the angleplates, rails secured to said end portions of the straps, and means for securing said frame to said post, and independently-revoluble rollers supported by the vertical members of said plates and forming the bottom oi' the way.

2. A spiral conveyer, comprising asupporting-post, and a way arranged spirally around the same and comprising' an open frame composed of a pair of spaced angle-plates torming the sides thereof, straps extending transversely of the conveyer and secured to the horizontal members of said angle-plates and provided with bent end portions which rise above the Vvertical members of the angleplates, rails secured to said end portions oi the straps, and means for securing said frame to said post, and independently-revoluble rollers supported by the vertical members of said plates and forming the bottom of the way, said rollers being of greater diameter at their outer than at their inner ends.

3. A spiral conveyer, comprisingasupporting-post, and a way arranged spirally around the same and comprising an open frame connposed of a pair of spaced angle-plates forming the sides thereof, straps extending transversely of the conveyer and secured to the horizontal members of said angle-plates and provided with bent end portions which rise above the vertical members of the angleplates, rails secured to said end portions o'l' the straps, and means for securing said frame to said post, and independently-revoluble rollers supported by the vertical members of said plates and forming the bottom of the way, said rollers being ot' greater diameter at their outer than at their inner ends and having intermediate recessed portions between their ends, l 4. A spiral conveyer comprising a post, means secured thereto and forming a spiral way around the same, said means comprising a movable section adapted to be moved to form a break in said way, and an outwardlyextending switch-section for leading the articles across said break and discharging said articles outside the spiral way from a place above the bottom of said way, said switchsection being secured at one end to the un- IIO - a section hinged at one end and adapted to be broken part of said way and spanning the break therein when adjusted into operative position.

5. A spiral conveyer comprising a post, means secured thereto and forming a spiral way around the same, said means comprising a hinged section adapted to be turned pivotally into position to form part of the spiral way or turned up pivotally to break the continuity ofthe spiral and a switch-section adaptedto lead the articles off tangentially from the broken part of the spiral when said hinged section is adjusted into its last-named position.

6. A spiral conveyer comprising a post, means secured thereto and forming a spiral way around the same, said means comprising turned pivotally into position to form part of the spiral way or to break the continuity of said Way` and a removable switch-section adapted to span the break in said spiral way when said hinged section is turned into its last-named position and to carry the articles off at a tangent with said spiral, said switchsection and way having a hook engagement with each other.

7. The herein-described means for conveying articles from one room to the lower portion of the room below the same, comprising a spiral way which has its upper terminal in the lower room and a supplemental conveyer or slide for discharging articles upon the upper portion of said spiral way, said supplemental conveyer or slide extending off from the upper portion of said spiral way at an inclination upward therefrom, through an opening which is located at one side of said way and in the floor of the room above that containing said way, whereby the necessity of an opening in the loor for said spiral way is avoided.

8. The herein-described means for conveying articles from one room to the lower portion of the roorn below the same, comprising a spiral way which has its upper terminal in the lower room and a detachable supplemental conveyer or slide for discharging articles upon the upper portion of said spiral way, said supplemental conveyer or slide extending olf from the upper portion of said spiral way at an inclination upward therefrom, through an opening which is located at one side of said way and in the floor of the room above that containing said way, whereby the necessity of an opening in the iioor for said spiral way is avoided.

9. The herein-described systems of conveyers, comprising a spiral way and a supplemental means leading from one part of said spiral way to another part of the same and adapted to convey goods rorn said one part or' the way to said other part of the same.

10. The herein-described system of conveyers, comprising a spiral conveyer, and conveying means connecting one part of the spiral conveyer with another part thereof, said conveying means extending at an angle with the parts of the conveyer which it connects and comprisingaswitch leading from one part of the spiral conveyer, a slide leading to another part of said spiral conveyer, and conveying means between said switch and slide.

In testimony whereof I aliix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

BENJAMIN H. ALVEY.

Witnesses:

JAS. G. DUGAN, GERTRUDE STRAUCH. 

